Donald R. Brown and the Institute of American Deltiology

Posted by on May 8, 2015 in | Comments Off on Donald R. Brown and the Institute of American Deltiology Donald R. Brown may well be the Dr. Albert C. Barnes of the postcard world. An ardent deltiologist, he promotes postcards as resources for the scholarly study of society, culture and heritage. In 70-odd years of collecting postcards, he’s amassed an unrivaled private collection, housed in his Institute of American Deltiology (IAD), an incorporated nonprofit foundation, museum and research center...
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No Featherweight in the Annals of Archery: The United Bowmen Of Philadelphia

Posted by on Nov 26, 2013 in | Comments Off on No Featherweight in the Annals of Archery: The United Bowmen Of Philadelphia The fraternal symbol­ism seems mysterious, even magical. A pavilion is outfitted with wings. In its center, a tall pole flies a flag bearing an insignia of a brass quiver stuffed with feathery arrows. The quiver is said to represent this little known club, and the arrows the fellowship and fraternity of its members. A belt – the ends of which form the bold letters U and B­ – which...
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On the Cutting Edge

Posted by on Nov 25, 2013 in | Comments Off on On the Cutting Edge When the Philadelphia Skating Club and Humane Society was founded on December 21, 1849 – and for the following seventy years – nearly all figure skating around Philadelphia took place outdoors, most often on the Delaware and Schuylkill Rivers. An ice skating fad swept America and Europe in the mid-nineteenth century, and hundreds of thousands of people from all walks of life –...
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